by Alexia Praks
He looked frustrated and angry, and I didn’t know what to do. Heck, I didn’t even know what I’d done to make him so pissed in the first place. All I wanted before we seriously began our relationship was to have a day to rest. Was my method ineffective? It was meant to come across sweet and pleasant when I wanted something.
I stared up at him with large eyes, blushing profusely as I continued to search my brain for words.
“Shit!” he snapped as he raked his fingers through his hair, his eyes dark on me.
“James? What’s wrong?” I asked, my heart racing. I hated when men got angry. When men got mad, they did horrendous things. The only male I knew who never did was my brother Andy. He just kept quiet and stayed in his room.
The moment I saw the dangerous look in James Maxwell’s eyes, my stomach knotted. Is he like Uncle Herbert? I wondered fearfully. Would he too whip me when he was upset? The thought didn’t sit well with me, and I eyed the door in dread, searching for a way of escape.
Suddenly, he swore again. “Fuck!”
I jolted.
James came to kneel on the floor in front of me and began unbuttoning my shirt.
“James?” My voice shook as I watched his hands working on my clothes. He was so close. “James?” I squeaked again.
“Mia, look at me,” he demanded.
I hesitantly shifted my gaze to his face. The hot frustration and anger I’d seen earlier were gone. Now there was only the twinkling within the Prussian blue.
“I don’t want to see you looking at me like that again,” he said coldly.
“I’m sorry,” I whispered, confused and distracted at the same time. He was peeling the material of my shirt away from my skin. I panicked even more, and my hands flew there, clutching the material against my chest.
“Just now, the way you looked at me and then at the door. Fuck, Mia. I don’t want to see you like that again, understood? It’s fucking sick. I’m not going to hurt you.”
He must have seen the fear on my face. But how could I stop myself from showing the fright when…
He moved one hand and cupped my face, his fingers entangled within my hair. “I’ll make you sure won’t ever wear that look again,” he said, matter-of-fact.
I blinked. “Are we going to make love now?” I asked. I had no idea how it came to this.
He chuckled. “Do you expect anything else? The way you were looking at me before… We’re only going to do the basic today, Mia,” he explained. “It will be a bit unpleasant for you since it’s your first time.”
The way I’d looked at him before? Then it hit me. I was gazing at him through my lashes and had done my best to be pleasant so he’d drop the idea of taking me shopping.
“Oh,” I murmured.
“Oh what?” he asked.
“Huh? Oh, I mean, I know,” I said, referring to the sex part now. “I’ve heard.” I paused and then added, “That is, I thought we’d wait until…”
He laughed. “Mia, do you know how hard it is for me to be around you?”
I stared at him. Obviously, I didn’t and told him so with my confused expression. Of course, I was too focused on my own confusion and attraction toward him that I didn’t pay any attention to his attraction and frustration toward me.
He looked pissed that I was so naive. He grabbed my wrist, which took me by surprise, and made me touch him there. My fingers pressed against his hot, hard bulge, and my body shook deliciously in reaction. I blushed in embarrassment and tried to move my hand away. He, however, wouldn’t let me. He made me spread my palm out, even with me resisting him, and cup him through his jeans. The evidence of him craving me grew more obvious as it got warmer and harder and larger.
“James,” I squeaked, my heart racing.
He chuckled, and by the time I managed to escape his hold, I realized he had my borrowed shirt down and I was sitting in front of him, totally naked from the waist up. He was working on my jeans next, and I couldn’t do anything except watch him. I felt as if I were in a dream, seeing everything but unable to do anything. My body felt so weak and warm and so obedient. It was submitting to his every command.
James pulled off my jeans and then my panties. I blinked as I suddenly realized I was totally and utterly bare as a newborn baby.
“You have a beautiful body, Mia,” he said softly as he gazed at me, taking in every little detail.
My tummy knotted the longer he gawked at me. When he finally lifted his eyes, my heart did a somersault. Oh shit! I wanted to cry out. Those Prussian blues were on fire, and instantly, my core reacted by tightening and twisting.
I didn’t reply to his compliment, and I assumed he didn’t want any since, as soon as he finished that proclamation, he dipped his head and took my nipple into his hot mouth.
The moment I felt the intense sensation, I sucked in my breath. My body shook as he nibbled and then sucked the sensitive bud. He took his fine time torturing that one, playing with it with fascination. When he was done, he did the same to the other, sucking, nibbling, and licking the flesh. As he was doing that, his hand moved down and cupped me, his palm spreading wide, his fingers warm and hard against my pussy. He rubbed against me, back and forth, as his mouth continued to suckle my nipple.
I couldn’t help myself. My body and voice danced along in tune with his command. I groaned and whimpered. It just happened. I wanted to stay quiet, but I couldn’t. I had no control over my own body. It sang out in pleasure as he continued to seductively ravish me. Then his finger went into me, and I cried out, “James! Ahh… I… James… Ngh… Nnghhh…”
His finger thrust in and out, and I became mindless. I clung to him as I cried out more. Then suddenly, he made me lie back, and my body weakly and obediently followed his demand. I knew I must have looked like a little slut waiting to be pleasured. My mind, however, was too far gone from logic to even think that, to know that. From my unrestrained, wonton position, I watched blankly but with fascination as James undid his belt and then his zipper.
When he pulled down his jeans and underpants, the beast sprang out, and I really cried out, my voice weak. It was a long giant of a thing. He was right. My small hand could never wrap around that beast.
I sucked in my breath and felt myself stiffen. That was supposed to go into me. But how would it fit? I hadn’t a clue.
When I managed to tear away my gaze and lift my eyes to his face, I noted him smiling. He was so pleased with himself.
“Don’t worry, Mia. It’ll fit,” he said.
Shit! He knew what I was thinking. I was too busy feeling stupid to actually register he was on his knees once again and was pulling me toward him. By the time I realized this, he was lifting my hips, his large hands supporting the small of my back. Then he inserted the beast.
I blinked as I gritted my teeth. He was hot and hard and enormous, and I held my breath as he pushed in a little more and then more. I held on to the bed sheet as if my life depended on it. Suddenly, a hot, intense pain erupted within me, and I gasped.
“Fuck!” he burst out. “Mia. You’re so tight.”
I bit my lip as he started thrusting faster and harder, and my pain slowly disappeared. I relaxed as I grew used to him inside me. Then I couldn’t help myself and lifted my head, simply because I was curious. I swallowed hard when I saw him and me joining. Oh my God! He wasn’t even in halfway yet.
“James,” I whispered, my voice shaking.
He was watching me and spread my legs out even farther to accommodate him. As he did, he slid into me deeper and then started thrusting in and out again. Slowly, I started feeling the pleasure take over my body and mind.
“James,” I groaned softly. “Oh God,” I murmured. “Ngh… Nnghh…”
I clung to the duvet as he continued to drive in and out, and then suddenly, I came, just like that. My core tightened and then shattered as my body spasmed and my vision went dark. It was a quick, exquisitely torturous spark.
I was breathing hard when I opened my eyes.
I said breathlessly, “No, not really.”
He smiled. “Good.”
* * * * *
CHAPTER 18
James
“I don’t like your fucking good mood, James,” Eric muttered in irritation. “And don’t even dare try stopping me from going to Japan.”
The three brothers were at Scott’s apartment, sitting around on the veranda outside, taking in the great view and the sun while they ate lunch.
Eric’s mentioning of his good mood put a smile on James’s face, and once again, he thought about Mia. Fuck, he couldn’t help himself. That sex had been great. It had only been their first time together, and he was hooked. He couldn’t wait to spend more time with her.
That sex was also Mia’s first time. He wondered if it lived up to her expectations. The thought it possibly didn’t caused his stomach to twist in dread a little. No, it was definitely great for her, no doubt about that. The look on her face when she came was a complete satisfaction for him.
“Hello? Anybody home?” Scott chuckled, waving his hand in front of his brother.
James blinked and laughed. “Ah, my bad. Sorry.”
Eric got even more irritated at James’s lack of enthusiasm about his trip and more so at the fact the brother was against it. “Snap out of it, James. I said don’t even try to stop me—”
James cut him off. “Nobody can ever stop you when you put your mind to something,” he said, both with admiration and annoyance.
Eric laughed while Scott just stared at James.
“James?” Scott voiced with warning. His tone made it clear they had to stop Eric at all costs.
James took a sip of his beer and then rested his head back against the chair. He stared up at the bright-blue sky as he said, “So what’s your plan once you’re in Japan?”
“Find whatshername and put a stop to the wedding,” Eric said confidently.
James laughed and turned his eyes to the youngest brother. “How the heck are you going to stop her?”
“You don’t even know what she looks like,” Scott said sourly. “Don’t be such a kid and just deal with it, Eric.”
“I’m not acting like a kid, Scott!” Eric snapped. “Like hell I’m going to accept a twenty-five-year-old child for a fucking stepmother. She’s practically my age.”
Scott and James looked at each other. They both knew Eric was very passionate about the subject, but shit, there was simply no way they could do anything about it. It was the old man’s business.
“And FYI,” Eric said, staring at Scott, “I do know what she looks like.”
Scott raised his brow with interest. “Seriously?”
“Seriously,” Eric said. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, brothers, I have business to attend to.”
With that, their youngest brother took off, his expression dark.
Scott turned his attention to James and glared. “What the fuck, James? I thought you were going to stop him.”
James laughed. “You and I know there’s no stopping that smartass.”
Scott nodded. “He’s a Maxwell.”
James sighed. “Yep, he’s a Maxwell.”
“Shit,” Scott muttered under his breath. “Dad’s going to flip if his bride doesn’t turn up.”
James laughed. “Like you actually care.”
Scott shrugged. “I don’t. Fact is I hope Eric succeeds, but…”
“He will,” James said.
“Shit will hit the fan,” Scott muttered.
James leaned forward. “Why don’t you go with him?” He suggested.
Scott raised a brow at his brother. “To Japan?”
James nodded. “It’d be fun.”
Scott laughed then. “Bloody hell. I guess I should.”
* * * * *
CHAPTER 19
Mia
The view before me was indeed breathtaking, and under any other circumstances, I’d enjoy it. But today… today was different. As I sat there staring out into the vast expanse of the city of Los Angeles, all I could think about was what happened a few hours ago.
Sex.
I just couldn’t believe I’d just had my very first sex. And with one of the hottest and richest guys I’d ever met. Oh, the ending was good, just like all the girls in high school had whispered about. That wonderful ecstasy when one came. The pleasure and exquisite feeling of being caressed and stroked. It was amazing. Yet once it was finished, there was nothing. It was purely physical, wasn’t it?
Was this what it was meant to be like between me and my new lover Mr. James Maxwell? Our relationship would be nothing more than purely physical pleasure? Of course, there had been no exchange in the emotional arena. No passionate connection whatsoever. Just the bodily contact. And somehow I felt let down, that sex wasn’t what it had been hyped up to be. At least compared to what romance books painted it to be. Fanciful worlds conjured by lonely authors who had too much spare time, imagination, and creativity.
I bit my lip as I pulled up my legs and tugged them under my chin. “James,” I whispered. “Will you always be like this toward me? Using my body and then leaving?”
I felt fear emerging within me, the invisible monster screwing into my heart and twisting about, making me feel awfully sick. That was part of the contract, wasn’t it? That was part of my job as mistress to a billionaire.
Tears stung my eyes, but I willed them away with the force of cold logic. “Stupid!” I muttered to myself. I won’t cry. I was doing to this to save my brother. It was a job I’d see to the end. Yes, I won’t feel sorry for myself. I should just be glad my brother and I needn’t think about the two million-dollar debt anymore.
Yet… that feeling of loneliness was still there. The hope that perhaps at least there’d be some sort of emotional bond between us. Oh, how I wanted that emotional connection—the lovey-dovey type between a man and a woman. The type I’d seen between Mom and Dad. Would I ever get the chance?
Instantly, images of James came into my head, the smile and the twinkling Prussian-blue eyes I loved. Then there was that amused look as well as the fiery expression I’d seen. And what about his tender embrace back at the motel last night when we’d returned from dinner? And then that gentle kiss on my forehead? Those were affectionate moments. It was like he cared about me, yet… Yet that sex had been good physically but lacking emotionally.
I shook my head. “Stop thinking about it,” I muttered to myself. I smiled. “It’s going to be okay.” Instantly, I dismissed the thought and turned my attention to my brother.
“Andy,” I said.
I’d get to see him tomorrow, and I prayed he’d be all right. I prayed this Matt wasn’t hurting and torturing him, but I knew otherwise. The agonizing sounds from Andy’s voice and the harsh words from Matt I’d heard through the phone last night had nearly driven me insane. It had nearly killed me. I was worried sick about him. Even though James had reassured me Matt wouldn’t hurt Andy, after what I’d heard, there was no way I could believe him.
I shut off my mind from the thoughts of my brother, too, and got up from bed. I rushed out the door and then down the stairs into the living area and kitchen. I mucked about, searching the fridge for something hearty to eat and cold to drink. It was three in the afternoon, and I was more than a little hungry. I hadn’t had anything to eat since breakfast around seven in the morning, which had been before the contract signing and then the sex.
James, of course, had left straight after, informing me he had work to do, that he’d return tonight. He’d told me not to leave the premises, as there were still people after me. He also told me not to worry about security, as this was his building and no one was stupid enough to break in. I had no idea what that meant, and I didn’t ask.
My eyes lit up as I searched about in the humongous fridge. I was surprised it was stocked up with every basic food item imaginable. Did that mean he resided here often? An
d what about his mansion? Did he spend most of his time here or over there where that beautiful brunette named Sophie stayed?
The thought of James spending more time over at the mansion and with that woman made me a little uneasy, and I didn’t know why. Why should I feel anything if the two of them were together? It clearly had nothing to do with me. I knew in my gut, however, that the woman didn’t like me, and I hoped like hell we never crossed paths again.
Dismissing the thought, I began making myself some sandwiches. Once done, I poured a cup of apple juice and carried my very late lunch toward the veranda, which was ajar to the living area. I made myself comfortable on the sun couch there and ate as I admired the view. I was just finishing my drink when my eyes caught the sight of a man down below. That sleek, black car the man was leaning against looked oddly familiar. Then it hit me hard, and I swallowed the last of the apple juice in shock.
“William,” I said just under my breath, my voice shaking. “What’s he doing here?”
Then I realized. This was James’s building, and he must have known I was here.
Suddenly, he looked up. I held my breath as he watched me through his sunglasses. He waved, and I could tell there was a smile on his lips.
I didn’t know what to do and just stood there staring at him. A moment later, he climbed into his car once again and then drove away. I cocked my head to one side, confused. Had I thought wrong that he’d seen me? I would have thought he’d barge right in and steal me away.
William’s sudden appearance made me so unsettled that when the phone inside the apartment rang, I jumped in fright. I blinked. Who’d be calling?
Ring… Ring… Ring…
Should I pick up and tell who it was to go away? But heck, whoever it was surely was persistent. It kept ringing and ringing, and it was getting on my nerves. Then, because I couldn’t help myself, I rushed in and picked it up.
